


Inlusio Fit Vera

by daelisix



Category: Day6 (Band), GOT7, Stray Kids (Band)
Genre: Fantasy, M/M, Stray Kids brothers, THIS STORY IS IN ENGLISH, because they look a like, best friend Jinyoung, experiential crossing perhaps, jaepil, jaepilweek2018, side pairing!MarkJin, supposed to be a one-shot
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-04-03
Updated: 2018-04-14
Packaged: 2019-04-17 05:44:57
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,988
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14182137
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/daelisix/pseuds/daelisix
Summary: Wonpil started reading a book that his best friend, Jinyoung, gave him. As he finished reading it, he tried to find another book to read and he started seeing things he's not supposed to see; going to places he's not supposed to go to; fall for someone he's not supposed to fall in love with.He also found out a secret that he couldn't believe.





	1. Iluvir

**Author's Note:**

> This is a challenge for me since I've never really wrote a 'fantasy' kind of story but this has been bugging me like it really wants to be written. Let me know your thoughts after :)
> 
> Also happy #jaepilweek2018 on twt!

Wonpil stretches before he rests his chin on the long table, unconsciously pouting. Jinyoung, who's at his bookshop café counter, lands a gaze on his best friend. He exhales a sharp breath as he shakes his head and decides to leave his post for a while to approach the guy lazing around his café.

"Here." The younger slides a book on the table, gaining a surprised and confused look from the older "Read it to kill some time. Why would you want to wait for me to finish work just to let yourself be bored the whole day?"

Wonpil presses his lips together and stares at his best friend, shrugging his shoulder. "I don't have anything to do. And I only have you. Besides, you can just leave anytime and let your workers manage the shop." He pouts

Jinyoung creases his forehead and shakes his head mentally to refrain himself to be swayed by his friend's cuteness.

"You know I want to manage my shop hands-on." He retorts "Just read the book and I'm sure you won't notice the time passing"

Surrendering with another pout, the younger stretches his arm to reach the book. "Another coffee, please", he requests with a beam and the taller rolls his eyes but goes to make another cup of coffee anyway.

Wonpil starts reading and he yawns at the second page. Although he reads some book, he isn't like his best friend who's a total bookworm; no wonder he built a bookshop café for business. There are books for free reading as you stay at the café with a cup of coffee or a plate of pastry but there are also books that are exclusively for sale.

Jinyoung eyes his friend from time to time to check how the other is doing. Fortunately, the older seems immersed in what he's reading. He catches him smile one time and pout the other time.

“Hey, it’s time to go now” Wonpil looks up with a questioning look and sees Jinyoung’s eyebrows raised. He looks around to see the workers tidying up the place already and ready to close the shop.

“Uhh, sorry” He smiles guiltily “I didn’t notice the time”

The taller snickers and shakes his head “Told ya” He beams making his eye wrinkles show “You can bring that home but be sure to take care of that baby”

“Baby…” Wonpil teases as he does a nose scrunch although he understands how much his friend love to take care of his books so much as if they’re his children.

The brown-haired returned to the shop at early noon the next day with a bright and warm smile. “Jinyoungie”, he grins while holding the book he borrowed close to his chest “I finished the book!”

The taller chortles and nods “Guessed you stayed up to finish it.”

Wonpil smiles with his lips pressed together. His black-haired friend then encourages him to find another book to read. He nods eagerly and the other just shakes his head in amusement, being grateful that the former finally finds something he can do during vacation.

The older wanders around the place as his fingers travel on the shelves. _What shall I read next?_ He pouts as he thinks of going at the farthest shelf. _There might be a treasure at the corner; like a pot of gold at the end of the rainbow._

While the black-haired tends to a newly arrived costumer, Wonpil fixes his eyes on the third row of the shelf, tapping his index finger on every book it passes. Pressing his lips together, he tilts his head as he puts his index at the top of a book, trying to hook it out. Seeing another book hidden behind it, he creases his forehead.

_Why is this book here?_  He studies the whole shelf to find a space between books, trying to figure out where it’s supposed to be placed. _Did a costumer purposely hide it to read it next time?_  He protrudes his lips as he tilts some books to get the one hidden behind them.

His palm grazes the hard cover of the volume. _Inlusio Fit Vera?_  He tilts his head with a querying mind.

“Piri?” Wonpil jumps in surprise as the younger appears beside him. The latter eyes the book that the older is holding and his eyes subtly widens in surprise. He gulps trying to compose himself. “Don’t read that, Pil.” He licks his lower lip before biting it as he reaches the book to take it from his friend.

The brown-haired furrows his forehead in query but shrugs it off. He pouts and drops his shoulders as he sighs. “I was just in the mood to read. Guess I’ll try reading some other time.”

“Come, I’ll get you your favorite”, Jinyoung offers “Tteokbokki? Ramen? Rolled egg on sushi?”

Wonpil playfully lands a fist on his friend’s chest “You don’t sell those.” The younger just let out a soft giggle and asks the question again. The former choses rolled egg on sushi so the owner of the shop asks a worker to buy them some.

“How was the book?”

“Hmm. It was great. I enjoyed the adventure but I kind of want to read a bit more different one—like the one you made me read 2 years ago. Between the Lines?”

“Oh that book? That’s a really good one. I loved that, too.” Jinyoung looks to his upper left trying to remember something “It was about Delilah, a girl who spends her time reading a book, and Oliver, the character in that story, who feels trapped by his predetermined written existence, wasn’t it?” The older nods with eyes sparkling as he remembers the story “Have you experienced experiential crossing?”

“You mean, having hallucinations about the book I’m reading? Like seeing or hearing the characters?”

“Uhm... Something like that”

Wonpil tilts his head a bit as he tries to think “Hmm. I haven’t so far. How about you? I won’t be surprised if you have. You’re such a bookworm”

The younger just shrugs before he beams at the worker who just entered the shop. “Oh, there goes our rolled egg on sushi.” He gets the food from his employee and utters his thanks before looking back at Wonpil “I can recall some books of that form. I’ll try checking them later if they’re available. I remember people bought some and I think I let a friend borrow one, too.”

“Oh, I’ll just borrow Between the Lines again, then.”

He can’t seem to sleep even when the moon is already up for several hours. He shifts on his bed numerous times before he decides to reach for the book he borrowed. _Might as well read to kill time._ But no matter how many times he flips the pages, he understands nothing. His eyes are fixed on the book but his mind wanders somewhere else. He sits up and sighs, mind travels back to when he was at his best friend’s shop hours before.

_Why did he not want me to read that certain book?_ He furrows his eyebrows while biting his lip. _It’s so not like him to not let me read a book and not tell me a reason. He’d usually be excited talking about books. What’s with that book?_

As if a light bulb appears at the top of his head, he reaches for the third drawer of his table beside his bed. _Sorry, Nyoung._ He hastily grabs the key that he was trying to find and dashes out of his room.

It’s just a couple of minutes before three am. He hides his hands at the pocket of his hoodie as he cautiously walks toward the shop. Yes, he has a spare key and the café is just five blocks away from his aunt’s house. Biting his lip, feeling guilty, he carefully opens the store’s glass door. He breathes softly as he heedfully takes a step inside. Taking a gulp, he looks around the place and tries to remember where the taller guy hid the volume.

He rifles through the counter and every shelf but there is no trace of the book. Pacing toward the stairs, a door at the corner catches his attention. _I never saw this door before._  It’s almost hidden. It’s below the second story deck of the café; behind the wide shelf leaning on the wall. It’s almost unnoticeable if not for the door knob sticking out beside the rack. Letting go of the handrail, he walks away from the stairs to amble towards the entrance.

He shifts the rack away from the wall. Letting his palm and fingers hug the handle, he swallows as he gathers up some courage to turn and open the portal. When it is finally unclosed, he steps inside with doubts and hesitation. Marching a little more, the scent of the wood welcomes him. His jaw drops in amusement as a comfortable sensation starts to linger on him. His eyes wander at every corner of the space. Trunks of an unfamiliar tree serve as the pillar and an aquarium-like container with glowing articles, which seem like fireflies, act as walls with vines and leaves traveling on its surface. Branches from the foreign tree function as shelves and books with vintage covers are arranged meticulously on them. At the right side not too far from the entrance, two single couches facing each other and a cut trunk serving as the table between them can be found. The tome he’s been trying to find is lying on it.

His exploration of the area is being cut by the object he’s been looking for. _So this is really Jinyoung’s secret room? He hides it even from me?_ He tries to shrug the hint of pain from his chest off as he strides closer to the table.

_Inlusio Fit Vera._ He felt the wind sweeps and caresses his flesh. _Weird. This place is close and has no opening._ Trying not to mind again, he takes a seat and flips the book.

He starts perusing every leaf of the tome as if chewing a food carefully before swallowing. The book talks about beings trapped in a world of what seems falsehood and fantasy to humans but as a matter of fact exists. _Just what I was looking for_. He nods as he continues to read the fourth page.

As he reads the second paragraph, a shadow passes toward the aisle between the ledges. _Is anyone else around?_ He carefully puts the book down on the table as he stands up and starts walking vigilantly toward the shelves. He creases his forehead as he looks around and sees no one. _Was that my imagination?_ He pouts and slightly shrugs as he turns back to continue reading, but a paper lying on the floor catches his attention.

_A drawing?_ His eyebrows furrow as he studies the picture on the paper that he just picked up. It has an almost fading image, which seems to be colored by watercolor, of a young man with a brushed up dark blonde hair with black growing from the roots. He has a pair of tiny soft eyes behind the large square glasses, and seems to have a long and narrow nose. His plump lips slightly parted from each other looks pulpy. On his right ear, a small cross earing is dangling.

He returns to his seat with the sheet in his right hand. He settles the paper between the last page and the cover of the book he’s reading.

“Iluvir?” He utters as his fingers graze on the words printed on every leaf. He sighs as he sympathizes with the characters of the book, the _Iluvirs_. The beings confined in a predestined world and ones who do not exist in the human world—like characters in novels and films.

_‘How infuriating it is to know your life’s a lie; that you’re not a driver of your being but a player of one’s game?’_ His chest tightens as he reads the sentiment of the character. After exhaling another sigh, Wonpil murmurs his wish.

“I hope you’d be free.”

Jinyoung pulls Wonpil from his bed the next morning and the latter falls on his face. “What?” He groans and whines. The younger just pulls him up and tells him to get ready for another day.

“Why are you so sleepy? Were you up all night writing music?” The black-haired asks looking serious “Your aunt has already left and called me saying you wouldn’t wake up no matter how she shook you. Did you perhaps stay up reading a book?”

“H-huh?” The older feels his blood rushes up and his eyes becoming hot “U-uhh…” His eyes land on the table beside his bed and find the spare key lying on it.

“You already read Between the Lines but you still stayed up reading it?”

“Uhh…” He gulps “Well, I was hooked. Now leave the room so I can prepare myself” He hurriedly pushes his friend out of his bedroom and shuts the door. He hastily takes the key and hides it in the drawer.

Jinyoung goes straight to the counter right after he enters the café while Wonpil sleepily strides toward his usual table. He yawns before he rests his chin and arms on the furniture. _Ugh, I just had two hours of sleep._

He turns his head and lets his right face meet the table and with the new angle, a figure makes his heart leap. _Where did I see this guy? He’s a new costumer but he seems familiar._

“Who are you looking at? Are you checking someone out?” He jumps in surprise at his friend’s voice and sudden appearance beside him. Now he’s seated properly. The younger tries to trace the brown-haired’s line of vision. Wonpil is pretty sure that his friend’s expression changed—he seems surprise and alarmed—subtly but not subtle enough for him. He knows his friend too well. “Who or what were you staring at?”

The older’s eyebrow raised and eyed the familiar frame seated near the glass walls. He’s still there with a book in hand. He pushes back his square-framed glasses and Wonpil’s eyes continue to study the form. _Where did I see you?_

“Earth to Pil”, Jinyoung waves a hand in front of him “Mark and I are going out for lunch. You wanna come?”

The black-haired looks at the counter and sees Mark, his best friend’s boyfriend, leaning on it. The latter salutes as a greeting, he nods and smiles back at him. “I’m fine here. Just bring me take outs” He looks back at his friend.

Jinyoung nods and lets his gaze pass the spot where Wonpil was looking at earlier. As the former leaves the place with his lover, Wonpil looks back at the young man and his eyes are fix on the little cross hanging on his right ear. The latter turns and for a second, their gazes meet. As if electricity travels through their vision, Wonpil feels shivers down his spine.

The said form stands up and walks below the second-story deck. Wonpil loses him when the young man enters an aisle. His forehead wrinkles and he decides to stand and follow the structure.

Arriving at the spot, the guy is nowhere to be found. But what surprises him more is that the door behind the shelf is also gone.


	2. Orbisia

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Did not proofread so excuse the mistakes  
> And sorry for the super late update

Splashing cold water on his face, Wonpil gets ready for another day—although it’s already noon time. Even though he’s been waking up late for the past days, ironically, he’s not feeling lethargic but energized instead.

“Why have you been coming late for the past few days?”, Jinyoung asks when the older approached him on the counter asking for an iced Americano. He answers it with a shrug before lifting his right arm, elbow on the countertop, and rests his chin on his hand. “You’ve been reading?” With eyebrows raised, Wonpil looks at his best friend as his lips part. “Between the Lines.” The younger raises his brows waiting for answer.

The brown-haired releases a soft breath of relief and gulps before answering. _I thought I was caught._ “Well, yeah… I read every night” he presses his lips together in guilt.

“You need the second book?”

“No. It’s fine. Not yet… maybe”

A customer excuses and asks for help. Jinyoung scans the shop and sees his worker attending to a lady and the other seems to be doing the same to another patron between one of the aisles. Wonpil offers to look after the counter for his friend to tend to the guest.

Standing behind the work surface with nothing to do, the brown-haired surveys the spot, thinking what it feels to be working behind the counter for the whole day. He sighs and pouts as he opens a drawer, hoping to see something amusing or somehow entertaining. _I’d probably just see a book that Nyoungie’s reading these days._

His hunch does not disappoint him. _Behind Closed Doors,_ the title says. He reaches for the book but just as he is about to take it out, a vintage box shows itself. It’s wooden box, which seem like a ring box, with an ornate engraving. Without a second thought, he gets and opens it. A familiar earing lies inside it.

 _Did he lose this?_ His forehead furrows as he thinks about the guy whom he’s excited to see when everyone and everything else are asleep except the moon and the two of them.

“Who—what are you doing here?”, he asked the blond guy he saw at his best friend’s café two days ago. Wonpil’s chest started to beat faster. _What’s with this familiar sensation?_ He came closer to Wonpil and the latter had to tilt his head to look at the guy who’s towering over him. _Man, he’s so tall._

“Shouldn’t I ask you the same question?”, he smirked before he chortled and shrugged “It’s such a nice place here, don’t you think? The ambiance, the vibe, and oh… interesting books!”

“How did you get here? If you won’t leave the place, I’ll tell Jinyoung you—“

“Can you?”, the tall guy lifted his eyebrow and pierced Wonpil’s gaze with a challenging stare. The latter averted his eyes as a lump started to form in his throat. He knew what the blond guy meant. If he’d tell Jinyoung about the guy, he would also know about him going to this place that he’s not supposed to enter. “Let’s keep it as our little secret, okay?” he winked.

Wonpil swallowed the lump and released a breath to calm down. As he settled himself on the couch, the taller one leaned on the aquarium-like thing which served as the wall. He opened the book he’s been holding and seemed to continue reading. _Off The Page?_ His eyes widened in amusement.

“You’re reading _Off the Page?_ ” he asked as if it wasn’t still obvious. The stranger lifted his head and stared at him. An earring dangling from his right ear shined “That’s the second book. Have you read the first one?”

“N—no. I was wondering why something’s off.” He chuckled and shook his head before walking toward the shorter guy. “So, this is the second book, huh?”

“I have the first book, _Between the Lines._ Do you want to borrow it?” Wonpil queried looking at the guy who just sat across him. He has tiny eyes and narrow nose. _Why does he seem so familiar?_ The young man’s small eyes looked down and his gaze landed on the book lying on his lap.

“Tell me about that book instead”

Since that night, which is almost a week ago, they’ve been seeing each other at past midnight. They share stories, share opinions, and somehow, Wonpil’s hoping that they share the same sentiments.

The presence of an employee brings back his wandering mind to the present. He turns to him with the box still in his hand “Did someone perhaps drop this earring?”

The workman looks at the cross earing with acknowledgement “No, it’s Jinyoung’s”

His forehead creases “Jinyoung’s?” He asks again, making sure. The worker nods his head with confidence. Wonpil looks at the second-story deck and as if on cue, Jinyoung goes out from one of the aisle talking to the customer who needed help. He hastily closes the box and puts it back in the drawer. He moves out and leaves the counter to the employee.

Feeling guilty, he bites his lower lip and tries to calm his drumming heart. He feels bad for hiding something—going to that secret library with a stranger, well not a stranger now, reading the book he was told not to read, and some things he can’t seem to point. _But it’s not like he’s not hiding anything from me, too. Am I not just being fair?_ He tries to justify his actions.

He sits on his usual place and static seems to travel all over his body when he meets someone’s gaze. He’s seated near the glass walls, just when he first saw him. The blond gives a salutation smile and the brown-haired beams back but the face he’s looking at is suddenly replaced with a more familiar one.

“So, are you really planning to spend your whole vacation in my café?” The younger asks teasingly and he just shrugs which translates to _‘yes, most probably’._ The black-haired chortles and shakes his head. The older can’t help but look at the visible eye wrinkles of his friend. “Anyway, have you already seen your brother?”

His eyebrows furrow. “Seungmin?”

The younger lifts a brow up “Do you have any other brother? Who else could it be? Of course, it’s no other than him. He’s with my brother right now” As if on cue, two attractive young men come in. Wonpil needs not to turn around to know whose new voices that entered the place belong to, still he does.

He stands up to acknowledge them. Seungmin, who’s a centimeter shorter than Wonpil, and Hyunjin, who’s a centimeter taller than his older brother, stand between them.

“You’re here”, Wonpil, once again, states the obvious.

They settle down and talk for a little while before the two younger ones head out again.

When the longer hand of the clock hovers over seven; while the shorter one is a little before one, Wonpil stands up and walks out of his room. Seungmin, who just came out from the room adjacent to his, looks at him from head to toe. He is wearing a maroon hoodie, with ‘mvp’ printed on it, over a plain white tee, a faded denim pants, white socks and a pair of slides flip flops.

The red-haired glances at the wall clock which reads 12:35 before looking back at his older brother “Why are you wearing denim pants? Are you heading out?”

“Uhh..” he swallows a lump before answering “No, I’m heading to the kitchen. Gonna drink water”

His younger brother narrows his eyes at him. “I’m gonna drink, too. You can go back to your room. I’ll get you a glass and give it to you later.”

“Uhh, no. It’s okay. I’ll do that instead.” Seungmin tilts his head as if studying his brother. Wonpil averts his gaze and bites his lower lip “Alright, I’ll just wait here. Thank you”

 Wonpil waits for more than an hour before he goes out because his brother stayed in the living room after getting him a glass of water.

“I thought you’re not gonna show up anymore.” The tall blond guy states when Wonpil enters the secret library. The latter just responds with a smile and asks for an apology for coming late.

He still doesn’t know his name. Every night—early morning, rather—they’d just sit across each other with a book on hand, having little confabs from time to time, sharing their viewpoints from the books they’re reading. But they could not actually read in a normal pace. They read a single sentence for ten times or just lock their eyes on the page for a couple of minutes as if they’re reading.

“You’re actually a slow reader, _too_ ” Wonpil said when he asked the tall guy one time on which part he was already on.

“Well, yeah.” The blond-haired shrugged. “I tend to repeat a lot of parts for me to really absorb what’s going on. It’s like chewing the food slowly, savoring its taste before swallowing it”

That’s one reason. But if he had been more honest, it’s because he keeps on being distracted with Wonpil in front of him—who actually feels the same. They keep on letting their sight linger on the other when one’s not looking.

“You’ve been reading?” Wonpil asks as he reach out for the book, _Inlusio Fit Vera,_ and takes a seat.

“Uhh, yeah.” The other nodded “Actually, I went back to square one,” he shrugs. No matter what the reason is—which actually being bothered by Wonpil’s late appearance—the brown-haired decides not to ask.

“Aren’t you afraid of being caught going here secretly?”, the blond queries a few moments after.

Wonpil bites his lower lip and  averts his eyes for a second “I actually am.”

 _“Being scared just meant you had something worth coming back to,”_ He states in a serious manner, eyes looking straight at Wonpil as if trying to deliver a message. The latter raises both his eyebrows in question and thinks why that line seems to be familiar. The young man with the glasses smiles  making Wonpil shift his gaze back to his book and swallow a lump. “It’s a line from this book,” he closes the book, _Between the Lines_ (which was loaned to him by Wonpil few days ago), and holds it up to show it to the brown-haired.

 _I guess that’s true. Getting caught would mean not being able to spend time with you like this anymore. And I’m afraid of it, even if I know it’ll eventually happen._ Wonpil’s mind says but his lips remain sealed.

_A person’s life is foreknew and predestined by a Divine Being, whom humans believe, who created them. Their lives are predestined—the Deity who brings them to existence has already designed their paths, like an Architect who designs a house; yet they are the engineers. This Divinity, whom they call God, gave them free will to choose for their own lives—to follow his design, or build their own; to follow the path He leads them to, or walk on a different one—which makes their existence also unpremeditated (despite being predestined) but the Divine One foreknows them. He knows which course they will take; He knows whether they’ll follow his ways or not; He knows the epilogue of each life._

_The Iluvirs, on the other hand, do not have this free will that humans have. Thus makes their lives only predestined ones. In Orbisia, the dimension of the Iluvirs, is a universe of determined routes. Like a character on a novel with a life painted by ink on paper; or a puppet controlled through strings by its master, these beings live according to the life designed for them._

Wonpil takes a deep breath and the other raises his head to check on him.

“What’s the matter?”

The shorter one shakes his head with his lips forming a thin line. “It’s just so sad,” the taller narrows his eyes on him “I mean, the lives of the Iluvirs are so…” failing to find the right word, Wonpil releases a deep sigh. “I just can’t imagine, you know, living a life like I’m a puppet being controlled.”

Wonpil notices the sudden change, although subtle, on the other’s features. He suddenly becomes serious yet his eyes are yearning. He closes the book on his hand and leans a bit forward.

“Tell me more,” the tall one raises his arm and rests his chin on his hand.

“I—I just want to take them out of Orbisia to live freely, to live how they want their lives to be and not how whoever-made-them want it to be; not like a character on a novel, a comic, a movie, or whatsoever, who needs to just act their parts like how the writer, the director or the artist wants them to. I want to save them,” he lets out another sigh “I’m sorry for being so dramatic, it’s not like this book, the Iluvirs and the Orbisia are real.” He shakes his head.

“If… If they’re real, do you think that these Iluvirs know the kind of lives they have? Say, if one tries so hard to keep himself alive but he can’t do anything because he’s destined to die in a certain point, do you think they know that they have a _fixed_ life?” The blond pauses for a bit “Just like Oliver in this book I’m reading, he knows that he’s a character in a book—that he has to play his part when the book is opened and to act freely when the book is closed.” He asks because he, himself, wonders—do Iluvirs’ lives only follow the flow of the book when it’s opened and do they act like how they want to be when it’s closed; or either way, their lives go the way their _creator_ want it to be?

Wonpil makes an effort in taking a gulp—he didn’t know that swallowing could be hard but just imagining himself being an Iluvir makes him want to cry in rage. The glasses guy discerns how hard it is for Wonpil and tries to lighten up the atmosphere.

“Don’t take it too seriously, it’s just a book.”

“But… if ever the Orbisia really exists and there are Iluvirs, I really wanna _do_ save them”

The next thing Wonpil hears makes him wonder what it means for the next hours. “You already saved one”

**Author's Note:**

> This was supposed to be a one-shot but too long for one so imma make it three to five chapters.
> 
> Excuse the mistakes; and leave some thoughts .thank you;) :*


End file.
